


Arranged

by CartwheelCatastrophe



Series: Elder Arthur Maxson is a Cinnamon Roll [3]
Category: Fallout 4
Genre: F/M, Maxson’s battlecoat, Slow Burn, Smut, but you can skip over it, super fluffy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-04
Updated: 2019-05-09
Packaged: 2020-01-05 09:58:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 14,027
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18363725
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CartwheelCatastrophe/pseuds/CartwheelCatastrophe
Summary: General Ashi Storm needed this alliance. Though she found love in this God forsaken land, she’ll have to give it all up again for an arranged marriage with the Elder of the Brotherhood of Steel. Good thing her twin sister Daenerys is willing to help dupe the Brotherhood into thinking she is her sister. Now the Brotherhood has a bride for their leader, the Minutemen keep their General, and Daenerys? I’m sure they won’t actually feel anything for each other, right? I’m sure the trick will work, right? Not at all complicated... right?





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> This work will be written as a perspective alternating between Esmeralda and Arthur. The first chapter is the only one that will be written in third person.

Ashi stares at the little wooden soldier. She took MacCready’s gift with her everywhere she went, so does this mean she has to take it with her now? To this fate? The door creaked and Ashi looked up to her sister, almost identical to herself, the only different was the variation in freckles Daenerys and Ashi had on their cheeks, and the unseen scar over Daenerys’ collar bone.

“Hey uh, sit down will you?”

Daenerys squinted at her sister and say down cautiously. 

“So you know that, uh, meeting I had yesterday with the Brotherhood?”

Dany nodded, no readable expression on her face.

”Well, turns out the best treaty is a...” her eyes welled up, “uh, marriage treaty”.

There was a palpable silence in the room. Dany cleared her throat,

”What about Robert?”

“Well uh, I mean, I can’t, marry...”

Dany was very tough, she was in a military program before the war and was living with Ashi before moving in to her own home. It was good luck she hadn’t, otherwise she wouldn’t have survived along side her sister in the vault. 

Dany walked close to her sister until Ashi was nose to nose with her. She threw her head into Dany’s chest and started sobbing. Her faithful sister held her there for what felt like hours, though Dany’s internal clock said it had only been 24 minutes. 

Dany put her hands on Ashi’s shoulders and pushed her back until they were staring at each other directly. 

“Get MacCready”

Ashi didn't question her sister, just walked upstairs to the little room she made for MacCready and herself on top of the Red Rocket. MacCready sat there on their bed. Ashi coughed. He wiped the tears with the back of his hand. 

"Can we uh..."

MacCready nodded and got up to follow her. 

Dany was sitting at Ashi's desk. For some reason the broken lovebirds sat in the guest chairs. Dany wasn't much of a talker, but it seemed like she had something important to say.

"Ok" She sighed, "Let's make something clear."

She pointed a finger straight at Ashi, "You are not getting married"

Dany glanced at MacCready, "At least not to that Brotherhood stiff"

Ashi choked "I have too... for the..."

"Bullshit" Dany said, her brows furrowing.

"Here's whats going to happen" Ashi and MacCready glanced at each other, "The Brotherhood wants a bride for their little king, Ashi, unfortunately, fits that bill. The Minutemen need a strong ally. Fortunately, your sister is a damn good actress." Ashi straightened up, "From now on Ashi, you are Dany"

Ashi's eye widened and she opened her mouth as if to speak but Dany cut her off again "You're going to dye your hair red and cut it short like when we were kids. I will marry that Brotherhood soldier, the Minutemen will get their ally, you and MacCready will live happily ever after and bring Duncan to the Commonwealth. You'll live the rest of your lives in peace with your family as Daenerys."

Ashi finally spit out "You can't do that"

Dany stood up "I've made my decision Ashi and I will not yield."

Ashi could not fight back. Dany was hardly ever stubborn but when she was, she wouldn't budge. Dany spoke again,

"You're happy Ashi, and I will not, no, I cannot allow you to grieve again".

Ashi was shaking. MacCready spoke tenderly,

"Would this work?"

Dany gave a very slight side smile,

"I guess we're about to find out".


	2. Met Your Match

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dany's vertibird lands on the Prydwen, and she sees herself in the man she has to marry. Is that bad?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the always loyal and always lovely Lady_Trevelyan84  
> Girl you been with me since like 2017, I appreciate your business XD  
> Sorry I went awol for 3 years :,(

Daenerys:

 

My shoulder was still wet from Ashi's tears, but the wind from the vertibird was doing a good job drying it out. The wind gusted into my face and I closed my eyes for approximately 3 minutes. When I heard the turbines die down, I opened her eyes again to see the deck of the Prydwen. I got off with ease, being a former marine, this was second nature, but I had to remind myself that Ashi was not, and I wobbled after getting off to sell it. A handsome man in his fourties approached. Some kind of higher-up.

"General Ashi?"

"Yes." No.

"Elder Maxson and the high elders have been waiting. Please follow me."

I wordlessly followed, it felt homey almost, to follow orders from a superior. 

"This is the command deck" the stranger announced.

There were several men and women in the room. They were all quite old and I groaned internally.

One man with a long white beard stared at me hard. 

"High elders, this is General Ashi Storm"

"Thank you Kells, dismissed" the bearded weirdo said, eyes still locked on to mine.

Kells left his place by my side and the old man walked towards me. I remained rigid and stared right back at him..

"So..." He said in an expectant tone. 

I said nothing.

"You are the vault dweller then"

"Yes sir I am"

"Preserved from the genetic perfection of before the war" He had a gravely voice. 

"I wouldn't say perfection, but devoid of all radiation and mutated defects now"

He _'_ _hmm'd_  , approvingly, almost.

"We are glad you agreed to the treaty. We will leave the two of you alone."

Honestly, I half expected the old man to be the one I was marrying. They all shuffled out, no one left with me, or so I thought.

"Well..." I heard a much younger sounding voice call.

I whipped around to see the man behind me. He wasn't fooling me with that beard, he looked young. Twenty years old maybe. I shouldn't be judging, I had three years on him probably, hardly anything. Still, it's like I went from one extreme to the next.

"Nice to see you again" He said stepping to the window of the command deck. 

I didn't say anything. I examined him. The muscle tells me he exercises, probably out of habitual boredness. It seemed like he used to be a soldier himself, a nasty line on his face said he lived through the worst the world could provide.

"Is something wrong?" He raised a single eyebrow, the man didn't show much emotion, at least we had _that_ in common.

"I just forgot how handsome you are".

His eyes widened slightly and the beard couldn't hide the faint pink spreading on his cheeks. 

"You didn't seem to think so last time we met"

I wasn't really there last time 'we' met so I just _'hmm'd._

"In fact, that slap across my face told me exactly the opposite. So why the change in heart?".

I squinted at him, "I've accepted my demise, the only thing I can do now is make the best of it."

His mouth moved, to the inattentive eye, it looked like a twitch, but I knew he was suppressing a smile.

"I didn't think marriage would be so dreary" he said, keeping a straight face.

"You try marrying someone you don't know"

He smirked, it wasn't big but he definitely was not hiding it.

"So..." I said looking around the room, "I'm assuming our marriage will be..."

He lost his smile, I missed it for some reason.

"Well, we'll be married in about five days, we'll have a one week 'honeymoon' period, and then back to work."

I nodded, looking at the view outside. I walked towards the railing, closer to him. I peeked out below. He spoke softly, which was a bit surprising

"It seems peaceful"

I nodded. 

Some footsteps made their way into the room. Maxson answered "yes?"

"The High Elders are waiting for you in the debriefing room" It was child.

"Thank you Squire, dismissed." The kid ran like hell, as if standing in Maxson's presence for too long would hurt him somehow.

"After you General" Maxson held out a hand, allowing me to pass first.

"We are getting married" I said poignantly, "It wouldn't be a bad idea to call me Ashi".

"Then please, call me Arthur."

I liked that name, and the man attached to the name didn't seem bad either.

Looks like I've met my match.


	3. A Wedding And a Kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The wedding was exactly how Dany envisioned it. Well, except for maybe that kiss...

Daenerys:

 

The wedding week went by in a whirlwind. From dress fittings to memorizing generic vows. It was similar to a Ashi's wedding to Nate in some ways, only they cut out huge portions of it. There would be a ceremony, a cocktail event afterwards, some speeches, and nothing more, nothing less. I looked in the blurred mirror at the woman in front of me. The dress was shorter than Ashi's when she got married. It went down my knee, a dingy white, but still white. A very nice scribe was measuring the dress, making sure it fit. The wedding was in a few hours, it had to be perfect I suppose.

"You're real lucky you know" the girl said somberly.

"Oh I know" I said with seemingly unbridled enthusiasm, "Arthur is a real catch".

"He's a fearless leader, I'm sure lots of girls are jealous."

_Yeah, well who wouldn't want to marry an Easter Island Head?_

"I know, not to mention attractive."

The nameless scribe turned pink in the ears, "yes, quite".

She packed her things up and left quickly. I looked at the hem of the dress she sewed. Not exactly a seamstress, was she? I sighed and shimmied the dress off and got to work fixing the half-assed hem. I heard the door open and saw Arthur walk in.

"Ashi I just had to run some..."

His eye bulged out of his head almost comically and he stared at the floor immediately. Only then did I realize I wasn't wearing a shirt or bra for that matter.

"I, uh, ahem. I'm sorry I should have... I'll go", I never saw such a composed man get so flustered over exposed breasts.

I didn't mind honestly, being naked wasn't that embarrassing, we'd see each other naked eventually. The door slammed.

I looked at the hem again, getting back to it.

 

I slipped the dress back on, admiring my handiwork. I managed to sew some patterns into the neckline. It was my own touch.

Another nameless scribe showed up and knocked at my door, leading me to the little clearing where the ceremony would take place. I still didn't know the names of every little place but I was learning. I was apparently early, or the scribe wasn't supposed to bring me here. I peeked around the corner. Arthur Maxson stood at the alter, his beard was trimmed, a little shorter than when I first met him, but still scruffy-looking.

I turned right into a pair of strong arms. 

"Sorry" I breathed.

"Daenerys?"

I looked up abruptly at the very familiar face. 

"Danse, hey." I said, mimicking the usual cheeriness Ashi always had in her voice.

Danse's eyes were locked at the scar marring my collar bone.

"Ok..." I began, more serious this time.

He yanked me by my arm into a corner.

"What the hell is going on Dany?" He spoke through gritted teeth.

"Danse, this whole thing was my idea so don't..."

"Are you trying to trick Elder Maxson? Dany I am not going to allow this." Danse looked horrified, like I had betrayed him.

"Ashi is happy for once. One of those reasons is MacCready, and there is no way I'm going to allow her to give up her happiness for some alliance" I spat back.

"This is beyon-"

"You know what Danse", I snapped "In a few hours I'm going to be your superior, and as such, I demand you never breathe a word of this to anyone".

Danse had fire in his eyes. Like he wanted to stab me in the throat. I wanted to say we stared each other down for hours but my internal clock told me it was only about 12 seconds. Damn the military.

"For Ashi" He hissed, "I will say nothing, but when this blows up in your face, and it will Daenerys, I will not be held accountable for this."

I breathed out, "This conversation never happened".

"No" he said in a gravely voice, "It did not".

He stayed put.

"Dismissed" I said, staring him down again.

I saw a twang of fury in his eyes before he marched off.

It was only about 30 minutes until I heard music playing, and suddenly my stomach dropped. Why was I nervous? A young man motioned for me to start walking. 

It seemed like a bad jet trip, like everything was slow motion. Walking down the aisle, everyone's eyes on me. I felt Arthur's gaze burning through me. He looked me up and down. The proctor's voice was muffled, like I was underwater. I spoke empty vows, placed a ring on his finger mindlessly. It was only until I heard the proctor say, "You may now kiss the bride" that suddenly everything seemed normal. Arthur cautiously wrapped his arm around my waist. I braced my hands on his biceps, not entirely confident in my own sense of balance. The kiss was soft, but somehow it felt like lighting passed through us in the 4 seconds our lips brushed against each other. When we pulled away I was hyper aware of all the eyes looking at me, either in polite respect or awe. Nothing in between. Arthur looked a bit surprised. Did he feel the spark too?

The music resumed and we walked down the aisle together, my arm linked with his. It was when we got out of the area I felt just how hard my heart was pounding. Why? 

Arthur seemed just as aloof as I did. My lips felt funny. I touched them gently, it felt like Arthur's kiss still lingered.

"So uh..."

We arrived at the command deck again, apparently for some photos to be taken, but for now, we were alone.

"You look nice" He managed to get out.

"Thanks" I said, not quite meeting his eyes, "You look good too".

A few seconds of silence passed by until the photographer came in. He seemed to know what he was doing,

"Alright you two, I need you to pretend you like each other". The guy chuckled at his own joke, not realizing how truly we had to take that advice.

"Now Mrs. Maxson..."

_Oof, I'm a 'Mrs.' now._

"I need to you put your arms on the Elder's chest and look at him."

I did so and stared. His eyes were pretty

"Now Elder, I need you to hold onto her waist and look her in the eyes."

He did exactly what he was told and looked at me. I felt like I was going to melt. His eyes softened.

I smiled a little, "hey" I whispered.

He smiled back "hi".

That was about the most informal I had ever seen him. The photographer flashed some photos then rearranged us.

After a few 'serious' photos the photographer beamed, "Lets take one for fun".

Maxson cringed a bit. _Not one for fun, eh?_

"Elder, can you hoist your bride over your shoulder?"

He didn't even give me time to react before I was thrown over his shoulder leaving me gasping in shock. He turned around so I was facing the photographer, I rested my elbow on his shoulder and placed my head in my hand, rolling my eyes dramatically.

"That is perfect Mrs. Maxson! Please keep that pose."

I huffed at him, adding to my fake drama.

"Now Elder, turn your head so we can see some of your face."

I felt his head turn to the opposite shoulder.

"Smile a little bigger Elder, you're married."

I chuckled at him and the photographer clicked away. 

"Thank you both! Ad Victorium!"

He scurried out while we both said "Ad Victorium" in unison.

I slipped down from his shoulder and was face to face with him. My heart was hammering in my chest. Even in my heels he was a whole head taller than me. That wasn't too hard considering I was just 5'6. He looked at me, his face saying nothing, but his eyes had something hungry in them. I leaned in and we shared another kiss. It was just as innocent as the first and made my head spin. I could feel him graze his teeth over my top lip. _Oh._

"Mr. and Mrs. Maxson?" the voice of a small child called out.

We both jerked our heads away and looked at the little girl standing at attention.

"The party is ready for you".

Arthur cleared his throat.

"Shall we, my dear?" He said the pet name almost cautiously, as if to test it out.

I smiled and took his hand. It didn't feel like an act, it felt real. It was a bit scary to be truthful, but I was too in over my head to stop.

"Gladly". He gave me a smirk and led me to the cocktail party, where the entirety of the Brotherhood of Steel waited for us.


	4. A Night In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arthur isn’t used to feeling this way. And the later it gets, the more confused he is.

Arthur:

 

Her hair framed her face like a halo.

She looked radiant in her dress, like she was outshining it.

God, the way she looked at me after we kissed, I’ve never been so hungry for someone’s affection before.

”Ashi” I said, stopping the both of us at the doorway of the celebration.

She looked up at me with those big hazel eyes and damn.

“I just wanted to say that there are a lot of people in there, they’re all going to be congratulating us” She nodded “But, some people are drinking excessively”

She cocked a single eyebrow,

”Look, you look...”

_Like an angel_

”... very pretty”

_Real articulate Arthur_

“Some men and women might get a bit handsy, they do around me when they’re drunk enough, they might do it around you.”

She nodded again in understanding,

”Look” I breathed, “If you ever feel uncomfortable, let me know, we’ll leave.”

She looked surprised,

”You’d uh...” Her eyes searched for the right words it seemed “You’d do that for me?”

Jeez, I don’t know why that felt strange. I thought I was just being kind but the way she’s looking at me I just...

”Of course.”

She gave me an innocent side smile, “thank you”.

I led her into the room where almost immediately we were greeted by soldiers, some familiar, some new. 

I thought I had it bad with drunk initiates, Ashi was swatting at wandering hands almost every minute. One man stumbled towards her, hands outstretched. She stepped back and the man missed her chest, looking up to see his hands were on mine. I don’t know what kind of a look I gave him but he looked like he was going to shit himself. He stumbled off saying a thousand apologies at a time. She snickered at the situation and I reassured her that we could leave if she was uncomfortable. I suppose it was loud but the way she brought me down a bit to whisper in my ear, my God.

”Let’s just stay for the speeches.”

For some reason the hairs on the back of my neck were standing on end. I nodded at her and we continued mingling. Suddenly everyone quieted down at the sound of a fork tapping a beer bottle. Cade made a little speech, followed by high elder Smith, Kells, and Ingram. We all clapped a bit and some slow music began to play. I fidgeted with my tie and turned to Ashi, “care to dance?”. She smiled a little and put her arms around my neck. I held her waist and tried mimicking her swaying.

”I’m not much of a dancer” I admitted.

”I can tell” she said, failing to hold back a smile. I flashed her a smile before someone tapped my shoulder. It was high Elder Jackson. 

“May I cut in?” The older man asked. I stepped away to let her dance with my superior. She accepted with a polite smile. I walked to one of my Star Paladins and asked her to dance. She seemed very flustered and nervous, but to hell with it, it was just a dance. I just needed something to do while Ashi and the elder spoke about whatever he needed to say to her. It only took a few minutes for the high elder to come over with Ashi, asking if we can switch partners. I nodded at the Star Paladin and she seemed to get even more stressed. The high elder took her by the hand as I grabbed Ashi gently by the waist. I leaned down and whispered,

“Do you want to go now?” 

“Please” she breathed back into my ear. 

I led her back out of the party, into my quarters and she tensed up considerably. I cleared my throat,

”Look I know there are certain, expectations, for what we should do tonight but I don’t want you to feel pressured at all. We don’t have to do anything.”

She breathed as if out of relief. We stepped into my room and I closed the door behind us. She sat down at the desk and looked at me. Truth be told, I felt pretty awkward just standing there.

”So, uh...” she began, giving a little smirk, “Plato and a platypus walked into a bar...” I raised my eyebrow, “Plato says, 'what can I say, she looked better in the cave'.” 

I laughed, actually laughed and I couldn’t stifle it though I tried. She chuckled,

“You know, laughing isn’t a bad thing. You should try it more often.”

I snorted at her, “Okay, I got one...” she straightened up, “Plato and Socrates finally meet. Plato asks him, ‘why don’t you have a girlfriend’, Socrates says, ‘You ask too many questions’.” 

It was her turn to laugh. I smiled, she had a pretty laugh, hearty.

We exchanged jokes for a bit, I poured myself some whiskey. I offered her a glass but she declined. 

“You know drinking isn’t a bad thing. You should try it more often” I echoed.

She rolled her eyes, “I kicked the crap out of the Institute, now I have to kick the crap out of my drinking problem.” 

I nodded, taking a sip of my drink, “I have plenty of problems” I stated. She snorted, “Yeah that’s apparent”. I narrowed my eyes at her but she just looked at me with cocky smile.

Weirdly enough, she reminded me of my mother. Not in an Oedipus complex kind of way but just the way she acted. Like she understood what I was going through and supported me silently, even if she didn't entirely approve.

”So, you smoke?” She asked.

”Mh” I said, the glass tipped to my mouth. I put the drink down, “how can you tell?”

”You taste like cigarettes and butterscotch.”

I wanted to be flattered but, “What the hell is butterscotch?”

She smiled at me again, damn that smile. 

“Something sweet”. 

I nodded, not trusting my voice to give away how much she was affecting me. 

“It’s nice” she said very matter-of-factly. I admired her ability to hide her emotions at a moments notice, something I still struggle with believe it or not. 

“Well then, whenever you want a taste of cigarettes and butterscotch, let me know”. She said nothing but a slight tint of pink grazed her cheeks. Ha, so I do have some kind of affect over her.

”Don’t hold your breath” she said. I raised my glass to her and gave her a sly wink. 

She narrowed her eyes at me, “I think the alcohol is beginning to take its effects.” 

I put the empty glass down and went to my private bathroom. I took a cold shower and washed off the fatigue of the day. I changed into a pair of track pants and a faded white t-shirt. When I exited, Ashi looked me up and down.

”Like what you see?”

Her eyes shot back up to mine.

”Your hair is standing on end, so you must have taken a cold shower.”

”Yeah, that’s what you were looking at.”

She got that little tint of pink on her cheeks again.

”Well did you?”

”Yes.”

She looked at the bathroom door, “Is there hot water?”

I snorted, “define ‘hot’”.

”Scalding” she answered. 

I worried the inside of my bottom lip for a bit with my teeth. “No.”

She sighed and got up, walking to the bathroom with her suitcase she brought with her the very first day.

I laid down in my bed, looking at the ceiling, my hand crossed over my stomach lazily. Ashi appeared shortly after, wearing the tiniest blue shorts and a black t-shirt. All of a sudden I felt very warm.

She smirked at me, suddenly I felt very exposed. “What?” I asked.

”Don’t tell me that’s how you sleep?”

I was a bit confused, she must have seen it,

”Lying on your back, hands folded in front of you. Let me guess, you don’t move during the night either.” I squinted at her strangely accurate picture. She sat at the edge of the bed, “You and me are cut from the same cloth, you know that?”

She laid down besides me, mimicking my position exactly. Well... at least we had something in common.

I stood up and turned the lights off. I rejoined her and pulled a blanket up over the both of us, at least a foot of space between us.

”Goodnight.”

”Goodnight dear.”

I couldn’t see her expression but if her reaction from earlier was any indication, she enjoyed the pet name I gave her.


	5. Feelings and Stuff

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dany finds it harder and harder to not catch feelings for the stoic man she was going to share a lifetime with.

Daenerys:

 

I woke up with a stiffness in the left side of my body. That was new, usually my spine was what gave me trouble. I opened my eyes to see the issue and I nearly fainted. I was tangle up with Arthur. My head was resting on his bicep, his free arm wrapped lazily around my waist. My hands were curled up and the only thing I could see directly in front of me was an unruly bit of chest hair on a muscular frame. I could feel myself go red. I looked up to see Arthur sleeping peaceful, his normal scowl gone. For some reason, being in his arms was more comforting than anything I’ve ever experienced. I don’t know how I ended up here but I did not want to leave, even if this wasn’t real, it didn’t mean I couldn’t pretend. I recalled last night suddenly...

...

”Well you make a remarkable Lady Maxson” chuckled high elder Jackson. He was the poster boy for cute old man stereotype. I smiled at him, “I appreciate it”. 

“You know you remind me of my wife” he said somberly.

”What was her name?”

”Suzanne” he closed his eyes a bit longer than usual, “She was the love of my life”.

I smiled at him, “That’s wonderful”.

”You know, she and I met just like you and Arthur.” I raised an eyebrow at him, “and you wanna know something?” I leaned in a bit to hear him the best I could, “She hated my guts”. I laughed at him, he continued “but as the days went on, we fell in love somewhere along the way. Suddenly we were saying ‘I love you’ on a regular basis.” 

I smiled at his enthusiasm. He looked pointedly at the high elder who gave a speech. “Old Smith and his wife  also met the traditional way. They can’t stand each other. Gwen cheats on him as much as he does to her. They’re bitter.” He gave a hearty chuckle, “old men are bitter anyways, imagine being extra bitter, ha!” I chuckled and waited for him to continue. “Now Maxson’s father and mother weren’t exactly fond of each other” I frowned a bit, thinking of Arthur’s childhood. “But they were an unbreakable team, they raised Arthur into a fine young man before they died.” Our eyes locked, “Now you seem like a reasonable young woman, so as you can see, you have three options. I’m not saying you’re gonna fall in love with Arthur, but maybe give him a chance, you might end up with a marriage like mine.” I nodded as he continued “If all hope is lost for love, strive for Arthur’s parent’s relationship. Work together and fight besides each other.” His eyes went dark “But please, I’m asking you not to allow yourselves to become like high elder Smith and his wife Gwen.” I looked over my shoulder at the high elder, he had lines all over his face, but nothing that showed happiness like laugh lines or crows feet. I looked back at the old man I was dancing with “I promise it won’t get to that.” The man stopped swaying and shook my hand, “Good, good. Enough of me, let’s get you back to your husband”.

...

I kept my eyes slightly opened as I played with the chest hair poking from Arthur’s shirt. I felt Arthur stir and I closed my eyes and dropped my hand back down. It felt like he just woke up. For a few seconds there was nothing, he said nothing, he didn’t move. Slowly, as not to wake me, he wrapped his arms tighter around me. He even left a kiss on the top of my head. This was really quite blissful. He pet my hair softly. This was really nice, I didn’t really want it to end but the tightness in the muscles I was laying on was becoming more and more uncomfortable. I opened my eyes and looked up at him. He looked down and gave me a slight smile. 

“Hey” I whispered.

”Hey” he whispered back.

”Why are we whispering?” I smiled a bit.

”You started it” his smile getting a little bigger.

He turned on his back and propped himself up on his elbow. I missed the warmth but did the same. 

“Does your side hurt too?” 

He chuckled “Yeah, not exactly used to sleeping like this you know.”

”Then who pulled me into his arms in the middle of the night? I think that’s your fault sir”. He looked a bit shocked,

”I didn’t pull you in last night, I thought this was you.”

I squinted at him, unsure if he was being truthful or not.

”Regardless, I will admit, it was considerably warmer with you close by” he sounded much kinder while sleepy.

The morning kind of went by normally. I showered first, then Arthur. I made coffee while waiting, he cautiously took a sip. Then we sat together in silence.

”I have a feeling we should be doing something” I stated.

Arthur took another sip from the coffee I made him. Another bout of silence came over us. A thought then popped into my mind. 

“You ever jump off the Prydwen with a full suit of power armor?”

He looked at me and smiled, a real, honest to God smile and for some reason I felt warm.

”Well” I leaned dramatically closer “What’s it like?”

He worried the inside of his lip with his teeth then smiled again, “hard to explain, easier to teach.” I couldn’t help the giggle that escaped me when he grabbed my hand a pulled me towards the power armor station. It was still morning and not many were up, Proctor Ingram was alone in the station.

”Ingram, two suits”.

She turned around and pointed to two sets of power armor with a smirk.

Arthur and I got in and made our way to the Vertibird deck. Arthur ordered one of the captains to take us above land, somewhere cleared out. 

“Ok” I heard Arthur’s muffled voice call out, “on three. One, two...”

”Wait!” I called. He turned to me and I yelled over the vertibird turbines “Go on three or go on go?”

”Who the hell goes on three?” He yelled back.

I laughed as he resumed the count down, “Three, Two, One, GO!”

We both jumped out, I felt free for a good 3 seconds, falling gracefully, knowing this height could kill me otherwise. The ground around us shook at our landing. Yeah the power armor took most of the pain out of it, but damn, my legs felt strained. I started laughing at the feeling, exhilarated and terrified all together. Arthur took his helmet off, he was laughing too. Genuinely laughing, and his voice sounded smooth. I took my helmet off too, “WOW!” He laughed at my enthusiasm, “Fun?” He asked, like he was out of breath. The vertibird was landing, ready to take us back to the Prydwen, though they had to wait for us to stop laughing and get our helmets back on without fumbling first.

The vertibird landed on the Prydwen and we were both still giggling like high school lovers. 

“Hey, head to the room, I’ll catch up with you” His tone sounded much softer than usual. It was nice. It made me feel very warm and fuzzy. 

I made it to the room and parked my power armor in the corner. I sat down on our bed, but not before something under the mattress on Arthur’s side poked out. I grabbed the stack of magazines.

_oh ho ho ho_

_I found his porn stash._

I quickly paged through the book, didn’t know how much time I had before he came in. The binding seemed to be stretch over two spots in particular. The first one was a pretty woman in the shower, holding her own breasts. I looked up, coast was still clear. The other most visited page was a girl straddling a man in a cowboy hat, she had a gun strapped to her thigh. I quickly put the magazines back where I found them, making sure they were exactly how he left them. I then walked to his desk and picked up a random power armor manual and started reading it. It took about 30 seconds before he walked in.

Just in the nick of time.

He had a dirty Manila folder in his hand. He waved it at me, “work”.

I faked being offended, gasping, putting my hand over my heart, “Work? On our honeymoon?” He chuckled at my dismay.

”Work helps keep me sane” was all he said as he sat down on the couch. The way he kind of just spread out. Resting his head on his hand, the other holding the folder, his legs spread just enough for me to see the bulge between his legs. 

_Turn around Dany._

I got up. 

_Sit your ass back down._

I walked towards him.

_Stop, this isn’t real._

I wanted it to be real.

I grabbed the folder from him gently, putting it aside,

”Maybe” I began, “You can stay sane in other ways.”

He looked at me quizzically, not quite picking up what I was putting down.

I slowly straddled him, his eyes widening considerably. 

“Ashi” he breathed.

I loathed that. It twisted my stomach that this, this weird relationship thing we had would never feel right because it was my sister’s name on his tongue and not mine. I vaguely remembered being a kid and telling one of my teachers that Ashi and I were different, and how they shouldn’t treat us like we’re copies of each other. If only I had known what I would be doing now, trading places with my sister for her sake. Now I’d never feel right like this... unless...

”Hey Arthur”

His eyes were lidded with lust, locked with my own, but he did not move, “huh?”

”Can you call me by my middle name?” 

“What is it?”

”Jaqueline”.

He hmm’d, “That’s pretty”.

”Arthur.” I said again.

His eyes were locked with mine.

I whispered “I’m craving butterscotch”.

That was all it took.


	6. Sex and Vows

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arthur didn’t exactly expect this so soon. Not that he’s complaining...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If the title wasn’t enough of a clue, this is just smut. Skip to the next chapter if you don’t like it, it will still make sense.

Arthur:

 

Fuck.

Yes.

Jacqueline leaned into me and we kissed, the same fiery feeling I got the first time we kissed. This time there was no one to disturb us, nothing stopping her from biting my bottom lip gently. I swiped my tongue across her lips and was greeted with her own enthusiastic tongue. Her hands were both holding the back of my neck, I held her waist.

As much as I wanted to grab Ashi, ahem, Jacqueline, and throw her onto my bed, a part of me still wanted to be a gentleman. That all went to hell when she grabbed my hands and pushed them until I was holding the curve of her ass. I gave her a squeeze and she smiled against my mouth. She struggled with my jumpsuit zipper, I broke the kiss to chuckle.

”Eager, are you?”

She ground her hips into me and I grunted from the friction. 

“That answer your question?” She said breathlessly, still fiddling with my zipper.

I pulled her into another kiss, the passion between us undeniable. I undid my own zipper and she immediately went to peel my suit off my torso. I put my hands back on her hips, sliding my hands under her shirt until I reached her bra. I went to pull at it and it came undone almost immediately. 

She pulled away “I’m guessing you’ve done this before?”

More like beginners luck to be frank.

”Not exactly” I respond.

She put her lips against mine again “Could have fooled me”. 

I slide my hands back down to grab the hem of her shirt. We broke the kiss again so she could slip the shirt off. The way she crossed her arms in front of her to take it off was gorgeous, like she was unwrapping a present for me. She stood to remove her pants while I slid the rest of my jumpsuit down my knees. I bent down to untie my boots,

”Hurry up”, not exactly a demanding tone, but I understood the subtext.

”Impatient girl” I muttered, finally straightening up. She hooked her delicate fingers around the waist and of my pants and pulled. I lifted my hips once more to let her pull it off. I hissed at the cold air hitting my penis. She got on her knees and wow oh wow, she way her hands gently grasped me. She leaned forward and licked a line from the base to the very tip. I shuttered at the sensation. She slowly, painfully slowly, took the tip of me into her warm mouth. She used one of her hands to grab my thigh, anchoring herself. The other she used to rub up and down the length of my cock. Her tongue swirled around, like it was dancing. I grunted, letting her slowly lavish this attention on me. She let me go with a very lewd pop. She started to straddle me again,

oh my, this is it.

She lined me up to her entrance, I held my breathe. She sank down slowly, I was convinced I wouldn’t fit.

S h e  w a s  s o  d a m n  t i g h t

I gasped for air. She moaned. She put her palms flat against my chest. We waited a bit for her to adjust and she lifted herself up until I was about halfway out of her, before coming all the way back down to my base. Her whimpering was the hottest thing I have ever heard in my life. She shivered and began a brutally slow pace. I flexed my calves as much as possible, trying my best to hold off, to let her ride me for as long as she could. Finishing early sounds like no fun for both parties involved here. She moved her right hand off my chest down to her entrance. What the hell was she doing? Rubbing... huh? But then I felt it. I felt her get tighter, even though she was already impossibly tight. I choked at the sensation. She moved her hand back to my chest, one hand wasn’t enough to keep her steady. I moved on my hands from her waist to between her legs. There was little nub there, so I tried rubbing it.

She shrieked.

I mimicked what she was doing early, rubbing her in tight little circles, faster than her own hand. She was panting. I felt her get increasingly tighter. I was damn close. 

“Ja-fuck... Jacqueline.”

She moaned in response.

”I’m...”

Her response was to bounce faster. I couldn’t stop myself. It was like being on jet, where everything slows and you feel some kind of euphoria. I could feel myself twitching inside her, she stayed put, letting me empty inside her. I shuttered at the way she slowly got up from my lap, letting my penis slip out of her. Wait, she didn’t cum, did she? I pulled her back on my lap. She laughed and went for a kiss, I held her there, while resuming what I was doing with my hand earlier. She moaned in surprise. I’m nothing if not a respectable man. And no respectable man leaves his woman wanting like that. What a beautiful sight to see. Some of her hair matted to her face, her body covered in a glint of sweat that made her look like she was glittering. The noises she made were absolutely delicious. She threw her head back and cried my name. Damn if that wasn’t the best way I had ever heard someone say my name...

I moved my hand back to her waist. She breathed against my neck. It was ragged. I held her there for a bit before I asked, “shower?”

”Please” she sighed.

Now before anyone judges me for not knowing what a clit was immediately, keep in mind no one talks to their superior officer about their sex lives, nor do porn magazines, ah- elaborate. 

The cool shower was nice, though Ashi complained it was way too cold. We got dressed, not as much as the first night, boxers were enough for me. Panties and a sports bra were good, though I argued the sports bra should be tossed, she kept it on.

I held her like I did this morning, she buried herself in my open arms. I brushed some wet hair out of her face gently. She looked up and planted a kiss on her lips. Even after sex, kissing her was one of the best feelings in the world.

She dipped her head back into my chest and I relaxed, for the first time in a while. I was rather content, feeling my lover’s embrace.


	7. Morning After

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daenerys is hit with some hard issues. Her feelings.

Daenerys:

 

I woke up to an empty feeling. I reached out my arm but there was just sheets. Opening my eyes, waiting for them to adjust, Arthur was not there. I looked to my left at the clock on the night stand.

4:07

I got up, my legs a bit sore from last night. I smiled at the new memory.

I stood up and walked out in a pair of shorts and Arthur’s black t-shirt. The ship was pretty silent. Even as a military vessel, not many people were up besides the guards. A few of them nodded at me, I noticed some of them lingered looking at me. I had nice legs, I was aware of that, if they wanted to look without touching, I didn’t mind. Arthur was nowhere to be seen. I was on the verge of giving up when I remembered there was a little workout room on the very top floor. As I made my way up, I could hear someone there. When I finally made it up, there he was, the man of the hour. He was shirtless, which was much appreciated. Sitting, doing some weight work with his arms. I leaned against the door frame and bit my lip.

The way his muscle flexed on his back, the beads of sweat on his forehead, the face of pure focus and he lifted the weight over and over again. It reminded me of last night.

I quietly walked down the stairs again, getting to our room and flopping back into bed. I was still exhausted, I didn’t get that much sleep. That and... the other tiring thing. 

When I woke up again Arthur was holding me like he did yesterday. His hair was wet, probably from a shower. He was awake, playing with my curly hair, smiling softly at me when I looked up at him.

”Hello” I whispered.

”Hello” he whispered back.

I got up and rubbed my eyes, stumbling towards his bathroom. I brushed my teeth and walked out. Arthur was at his desk, looking at that folder from yesterday, his back turned to me.

“What?” I asked, “was yesterday’s exercise not enough to keep sane?”

He chuckled, “I didn’t want to tell you but I think you made me _more_ insane”.

I went behind him and wrapped my arms around his frame. I rested my head on his shoulder, trying to decipher Cade’s handwriting from the folder. 

“Hey” he said, flipping a page in the folder, “what was that you made yesterday? That black liquid...”

”Oh coffee? You want some?” He nodded very slightly. I kissed his cheek gently and stood up straight, walking towards his poor excuse of a kitchen. He called out behind me, “I appreciate it”. He was sweet like honey but there was no getting rid of that formal speech of his. As I made the coffee he walked up behind me, resting his hands on my waist. He rested his chin on the top of my head. Another reminder of his stature in comparison to mine. As I finished making the coffee, it occurred to me how bizarre this situation was. 

I had a husband, a new domestic life. Something the real Ashi would have killed for when we stepped out of that vault. Except I didn’t have to go through the process of meeting someone, falling in love, taking a chance and professing my feelings, hoping the other feels the same. I skipped it all, it felt almost as if I just walked in and replaced someone in their life. It was weird but...

Arthur took a cup from me and smiled as he sipped the coffee I handed him.

...To be honest I... liked this. I liked Arthur. I liked the Prydwen. I liked the soldiers around me. I like the peacefulness. A far cry from the errands I would run for Ashi, putting bodies in the ground for her settlements. It was fine, really, I didn’t mind doing it, that’s what the Marines trained me for before the war. And yet, in the three days I’ve spent with Arthur Maxson, I finally understand the appeal of domestic life. For once in my life I had someone protecting me rather than the other way around. I felt safe up here, and as much as I enjoy wandering the Commonwealth, this was good too.

”You seem to have a lot of your mind” Arthur’s voice pulled me from my thoughts. He was looking at me, staring into my soul like he always did. 

“Just thinking about us” I admitted, “I don’t mind the way you treat me as much as I’d thought”.

He raised an eyebrow at me, “How so?” 

I shrugged, “I thought you’d be unpleasant, rude, barbaric, unbearable.”

”Well” he admitted, “Some would say rude, I say stern”.

I smiled at him, “I’d say having a stick up your ass is more accurate terminology.”

He sneered at me, “Thank you” he said, his voice dropping in sarcasm. I bit my tongue and smiled a big smile at him. 

The rest of the day went on, uneventfully. He worked, I tidied up, I distracted him from work, he complied and joined me for a shower, though it was less about getting clean and more about relieving some... stress we’ll call it.

Arthur asked a scribe to bring some food for us. It was mediocre at best. Afterwards he sat on his couch. I sat besides him, laying my legs over his lap. He rubbed the inside of my thighs with the pad of his thumb. We talked about a lot of things. Eventually I suggested Rock Paper Scissors. Loser had to tell a secret. We played and laughed at each other’s stories. Eventually it was his turn again. His eyes went unnaturally dark. “I have no desire to be the Elder of the Brotherhood of Steel” he said, serious and unwavering. I put my hand on his scarred cheek, “why not?” I asked. 

“I feel as if I’ve been trained to be something my entire life. Now I’ve become what they wanted me to be. My one goal was to destroy the Institute. You did it yourself. I had nothing to do with it. So now my goal is to expand the Brotherhood.” 

I smiled at him a bit, “what’s wrong with expansion?”

His brows furrowed, “I feel like I’m checking off a list. I’m not living.” His eyes softened at me, “For the first time in my life, with you, I feel normal. Like a regular soldier with a wife he love...” He stopped abruptly, his eyes widening at his unintentional confession. 

“I mean... what I meant to say was, well, I was trying to...”

I touched my forehead to his, “Arthur...” He stopped talking.

”I’m...” _oh no_ “I’m falling in love with you too...”

He smiled at me and gave me a kiss. Innocent, just like the very first one we ever shared. He lifted me up and carried me to bed. We both stripped down to our undergarments. He held me close to him and we started talking about our secrets. It was my turn.

“I have a secret I cannot tell you.” I was crossing into some dangerous territory.

He brushed some hair from my face, “You can tell me anything.”

”You wouldn’t say that if you knew what it was.” He smiled at me again, damn it He was so cute.

”I did just admit that I loved you. I hope you realize I was not joking”.

I buried my head into his chest, he held me securely. “If you don’t want to tell me” he sighed, “I understand. But you should understand that the way I feel about you is not going to change, no matter what happened to you in your past. I’d take on the world for you.”

When I felt him fall asleep, I allowed myself to cry.

What have I done?


	8. Short & Sweet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A short and sweet morning, interrupted by something important.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The calm before the storm...

Arthur:

 

I had always heard the expression “honeymoon phase” before, but I don’t think I quite understood what that was before I actually had my own honeymoon. There were three days left and I felt as if time was slipping out of my hands like grains of sand. Soon I’d be back at work leading, Ashi would be traveling to her Minutemen Headquarters and back to the Prydwen when needed. I don’t know what our future holds but I have a feeling we won’t spend as much time together as I would like to. Distance makes the heart grow fonder I suppose. Even if it does suck. Ashi walked out of my bathroom in her vault jumpsuit. I had never actually seen it before. 

She shrugged, “This is all I have left”.

I didn’t mind in the slightest. The fabric clung to her body, showing off her delicious little curves. Ashi began making coffee again. I sat at the edge of our bed, noticing the papers under my mattress. I hadn’t touched my, ahem, sexually explicit, magazines in a while, but I remember how I put them originally. I looked at the woman in the kitchen and snickered. She turned her head a bit at the sound.

”What do you think then? Do I have good taste?” I asked, holding up the magazine that was out of place. 

She smirked, “You ever notice the times we had sex? What exactly we were doing?”

It wasn’t hard to remember, our times together. The first night she... rode... me...

I turned to the page I favored. There was that nameless blonde riding a man. 

The second time we were in the... shower...

I turned to the second favorite page of my magazine, lo and behold, the brunette woman in the shower.

I looked at her and smiled “You vicious woman, you played me like an instrument.”

She turned from the coffee, “Let’s just say I do my homework” she ended the last word with a wink.

Half of me wanted to kiss that smug little grin off her face. The other half wanted to bend her over that kitchen counter and take her right there. I went with the former, standing, turning her by the waist and kissing her gently. 

“That’s not fair” I muttered, “I still don’t know your weakness.”

She looked at me, her eyes a tad wider, “I thought mine was fairly obvious”. She smiled, I tried searching for a clue, any clue of what it was. She just keep looking into my eyes. Wait... Me? Was she saying I was her weakness? Before I could say anything she turned back to the coffee and poured out two cups for us.

She turned and handed me the drink. I took a cautious sip while looking into her eyes. Brown then green then a deep, almost black blue. She smiled, completing the look, “Why are you staring me?” I smiled, “I’m just admiring you”. She rolled those big beautiful eyes, “You say that to every girl you have a marriage treaty with?” I chuckled, “That seems to be the case so far”.

The radio crooned out a very familiar song. I held out my hand, “May I have this dance?”

Something in her eyes sparkled, I’m not sure if that was really there or if I was just imagining it but it was damn special. She placed her hand delicately into mine and I took her a few steps back into a more open area. I put my hand on her waist and held her hand with the other. She leaned her head gently on my shoulder. She was much more graceful than I, she made it seem easy. She hummed along with the song, I could feel myself smiling like an idiot. “Do you remember this song?” I was quite impatient, she looked up at me, searching my eyes. Then the sparkle in her eyes returned and she smiled, “This was the song we danced to... at our wedding.” I gave her a kiss on the forehead. She smiled and put her head back on my shoulder.

“You know” I informed her, “I still don’t know what this song is called”.

She looked up at me and smiled again, damn it, she had me wrapped around her finger. “How deep is your love by The Bee Gees” she answered, “It’s one of my favorites”. The way she looked at me, I could get used to spending every morning like this, even if that is unlikely.

I pulled her closer. She wrapped her arms around my neck as I moved to kiss her again. She met my lips and I sucked on her bottom lip, feeling her smile against my mouth. She introduced her tongue, effectively rendering me useless. If I had any weakness in this world, it would be this woman. She moaned lightly into my mouth and I swallowed up the beautiful sound that escaped her. The walls I had spent years building up to protect myself from the horrors of this world I would let her destroy in a passing second if it meant spending the rest of my life with her. I pressed her closer to me, wanting more of her, as much as I could get. A short buzz stopped us both in our tracks. She glared at the door, obviously unhappy with the timing of whoever was on the other side.

”Relax my love, we’ll continue this, ahem, excursion, later on”. She _giggled_ , a sweet bubbly noise I had no idea was so cute, “Go on then” she said, nodding towards the door. I kissed her forehead, enjoying the light blush that spread on her cheeks and made my way to the door where the high elders stood. 

“Elder, we need to speak with you immediately. Please, come with us”. I nodded, unsure of what to expect. I closed the door behind me.

Whatever it was, this was serious.


	9. Discovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elder Jackson doesn’t know what to make of this situation...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sad lad chapter

High Elder Jackson:

 

Elder Maxson sat there, hunched over, one hand covering his mouth. Both his elbows were on his knees, supporting his weight. On him was the face of a broken man. As if it weren't enough, Elder Smith just had to rub salt in the wound.

"This is an outrage" the old coot yelled, flailing his arms into the air, "and to think she almost got away with this! What could she have been after? What if she was a synth-".

"Enough" I enunciated, "We have more than enough evidence to prove she is General Storm's sister. Besides, with the Institute gone, who could be making synth replacements, and for what purpose?"

Smith huffed, "nothing is certain, but I suppose her being a twin sister is more likely...".

Elder Maxson said nothing, just sat in that chair, looking as defeated as the day I lost Suzanne to that stray bullet. Only this man had lost his wife to something far more... complicated. 

Smith called a scribe, "Get that Lady Maxson in here immediately". The scribe nodded and scurried off.

Smith was practically snarling, the other elders looked mixed between angry and frightened.

The door creaked open, revealing a very curious vault dweller. She stood at the door, waiting for someone to say something.

“Alright now” Smith spit out, “out with it, we know the truth.” She raised a single eyebrow at the withered high elder, further enraging him. 

“What were you planning on accomplishing here, snake?” She seemed to be slightly taken aback at the insult, Smith continued, “That you felt the need to trick the Elder into marriage? It’s despicable.” Her eyes widened slightly, Smith probably could not see it, only I could, being so close to the door. She opened her mouth but Smith continued his ranting, “Did you honestly believe we would never discover your dirty secret? You are the lowest of low, scum of the Commonwealth, deceitful whore!”

She winced at the last insult, as did I. She glanced at Maxson but the young elder kept his eyes glued to the floor, hands clasped together. She stole glances as the high elder continued, “I have half a mind to execute you, but seeing as the Minutemen’s _true_ general would retaliate, the only thing that can be done is banishment. Not that this changes anything, but what do you have to say for yourself?”

She looked at the high elder with soft eyes, “I am sorry. Even if you do not believe me, I truly meant no harm to the Brotherhood...” She moved her gaze to Maxson once more, “Nor to You Arthur, I-“.

”Do not address me so informally” Maxson spoke through gritted teeth, surprising myself as well as his now ex-wife. The stared at her, his eyes were dark, some might say angry, I would say broken, “You lied to the steel, you lied to countless soldiers, you lied to me. Get out of my sight. Now.”

The girl was good at concealing her emotions, but I could almost  _hear_ the exact moment her heart shattered. She reeled subtly, her mouth opened a crack, her eyes began to fill with tears. Before letting anyone see her in such a state, she turned and opened the door, hurrying out and Smith spit in her direction.

A few moments passed before I moved to follow her. I could hear Smith’s protests but pretended I did not. I managed to catch her boarding the vertibird. “Miss!” I called out, she turned and waited for me to catch up with her. 

I stood in front of her, a million things to ask her, nothing coming out of my mouth. Her eyes were wet, but no tears were falling from her eyes. 

“What is your name?” was all I could ask her.

”Daenerys” she replied dryly.

"I like that name" I exclaimed. 

She smiled at me, a pained smile but nonetheless genuine, 

"I don't think your fellow high elders would agree..."

"Oh what do those old tato sacks know?"

She smiled a little brighter. It wasn't much but it was better than nothing.

“I want to thank you for your hospitality and the wise words you shared with me. I’m sorry I deceived you.” 

“Ach” I brushed off her apology, “What’s in a name, right?” She maintained her sad smile and looked at the floor. I asked her another question, 

“Tell me something...” she looked up.

”Did you love him?” The mention of that word seemed to break her, her eyes filling to the brim with tears. I held out my arms and she collapsed into my chest. I rubbed her back to comfort her the best I could. She sobbed and brokenly gasped for air as if to fuel the pain of her heart. It was only two minutes or so until she balled up her fists and stood up straight, wiping the wetness of her eyes. Her hazel irises popped against the redness of her eyes. She breathed shakily, exhaling steadily. She nodded at me and boarded the waiting vertibird. The engine turned on with a roar and the turbines beat violently. I watched the vertibird detach from the ship and head northwest. I continued watching until the aircraft disappeared.

I turned and made my way into the Prydwen, seeing a familiar figure in the command deck. I marched over to that idiot, the wetness on my suit from Daenerys’ tears nearly dry but still lingering, a reminder of the pain she left with today.

Maxson has his back to me, shifting slightly as I walked in, making it clear he knew I was there. 

“What have you done?” I asked, as calmly as I could make myself without exploding on the man.

”The Brotherhood will be looking at expansion in the Commonwealth. And I will lead my soldiers into victory.”

Intentionally ignoring my question, his stupidity matched only by his stubbornness.

”Horse. Shit.” I enunciated, making him whip around to face me.

”You are out of line-“ he began before I cut him off.

”No _you_ are out of line. Are you honestly so ignorant? I expected a man like you not to act so rashly, to act like an _adult_.”

Maxson looked angry, his mouth open to say something, but nothing came out, so I continued, “I once read something by a very intelligent man” Maxson closed his mouth, “he said that a rose by any other name would smell as sweet” I pointed at the windows, “You just banished a rose to the Commonwealth because she called herself something different.” 

“She lied to me” Maxson got out.

”Who gives a damn if her name is Ashi, she is the same woman is she not?”

He seemed to let his walls down a bit, slouching forward a bit, pinching the bridge of his nose.

”She loves you for you and not your name. Is that not something you always wanted?”.

”Y-yes” hardly did Elder Maxson stutter, but I pressed on, “Then why can’t you do the same for her?”

”She used me” he snarled, “she deceived me, I was made to be a fool and I refuse to let myself be made a fool again.”

How could I explain to this broken man the joys of love when he knew nothing now but pain? And yet, there was no excuse for his blind ignorance.

“Then perhaps you do deserve Ashi” He looked up, confused. 

"You deserve a woman who does not know you, who refused to marry you, who hated the thought of marriage with you so much, she sent a replacement, thinking you would be fooled."

He looked more broken than anything else and I decided he had had enough.

"One thing is for damn certain" I breathed, "You don't deserve the woman you married. You don't deserve Daenerys".

Maxson perked a bit at the foreign word. He looked at me, his eyes narrowing, opening his mouth to speak. But I had enough of him. I turned and walked away, angry, disappointed, sad.

”God help them” was all I muttered, walking towards the other high elders, no doubt to be scolded.

The tears on my suit were dry now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :(


	10. Return Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daenerys returns to her home, only it doesn’t feel the same.

Daenerys:

 

The vertibird rose up, leaving a cloud of dust where it once stood. I watched it rise up and turn back to the direction of the Prydwen. I had asked for the pilot to leave me at the Red Rocket, too ashamed to allow me the convenience of dropping me off at Sanctuary. I walked passed the gate and greeted a few people, some called me Ashi. 

“Hey! You’re back!” I heard a very familiarly monotone voice call out. I turned to Preston and forced a smile, “How’s the high life, Ashi?” He ended the last work with a wink.

I chuckled, “Sort of crashed and burned. You can call me Dany again.”

His face went darker, “Damn, I’m sorry Dany. Hey, you tried.”

”Heh, yeah, where’s the real Ashi anyways?” 

“Oh, I can go grab her” he started towards the fortified metal building Ashi made as Sanctuary’s armory.

”No, no” I insisted, “Just tell her I’m at her place, she can meet me when she’s got time.”

”Sure. Hey Dany, you alright?” As emotionlessly as he said it, I knew Preston better than to think he didn’t actually care. It was just his depression getting the better of him.

”Yes, I’m alright” I tried saying.

”Your eyes are awful bloodshot, are you sure?” His eyes were concerned.

”I just took a hit of psycho jet so I’m still a little off.” 

He didn’t believe me, but he was enough of a gentleman to drop it. Maybe in another life I would have fallen in love with Preston. Then we would have been helpful, depressed little shits together.

I walked into Ashi’s home, the home I spent my final days before the war in. It was spotless, Ashi was quite ocd though she vehemently denied it. I collapsed into her couch and rubbed my temples with my index and middle fingers. I heard a door open and looked up expecting Ashi, rather I saw MacCready. He seemed a bit startled, his hand flying to the pistol on his hip but relaxing when recognizing me. 

“Relax killer, it’s just me” I sighed, returning my fingers to the sides of my head. 

“Da-uh Ashi. I wasn’t expecting you...”

”It’s ok, you can call me Dany again, the jig is up.”

His eyes looked sad, then again, he always looked sad.

”Aw man, they figured you out.”

”Yeah, do you mind leaving me? I got uh, pretty big jet induced headache” I was hoping he wouldn’t notice my hesitation.

He did, “You don’t take chems.”

”I do now, do you mind?” 

He didn’t seem convinced but I closed my eyes. I opened them only when I heard the door shut a few moments later. He too was a gentleman it seemed. 

I breathed in and out, concentrating on my breathing. Deep breath in, deep breath out. I decided to pray, Ashi lost her religion when we left that vault, though I recently found her following me to the chapel in Concord on Sundays. I prayed for peace, for myself, for my sister, for Arthu-.

I jerked my body up to a sitting position.

No, Elder Maxson. I would pray for Elder Maxson, but never for Arthur. After all, it was important to pray for your enemies. 

I closed my eyes again, ‘God, grant us all peace. Guide us all, myself, my sister, my brother in law, the people of Sanctuary, the Minutemen, ahem, Elder Maxson and his soldiers. Protect us, keep Maxson safe, give him strength, give him happiness, even without me. Help him find a good wife, have him look at her the way he once looked at me.’

I didn’t realize I was crying but my mind didn’t stop, my eyes screwed shut

‘Give him joy, keep him safe from someone like myself. Don’t let anyone deceive him again. Make his heart light, so he can give someone else a chance to love him again. Don’t let him be afraid of love because of me. Give-‘

“Dany!” A voice snapped me back to reality. My vision was blurry, like looking through a glass of water. Ashi held my shoulders,

“What the hell did he do to you?!”

I blinked away the tears, my sister looked enraged, a look I had only seen one other time, when she killed Kellogg. It seemed magnified with her newly red hair, cut to her shoulder, less curly than mine, but enough to make it seem like it was ablaze.

“I’ll kill him” she said through gritted teeth, “What did he do? I’ll castrate that bastard if he touched you.” 

“No” I managed to get out and grabbed her hands, “He didn’t do anything.”

”Don’t you lie to me Dany. I’ll burn that fucker and his giant blimp to hell, just say the word.”

I took a deep breath, “Ashi, you don’t get it, please just leave me alone and I’ll talk to you later today, okey.”

Dany looked at me like she wanted to smack me. Her grip on my shoulders hardened, then relaxed.

”Okey, I’ll leave you to it” she sighed, “Just tell me now, please, did he hurt you?”

”No.”

I hurt myself.

She nodded, standing up and walking out of the house. I got up from her couch and walked into my old room, falling into the bed. I grabbed my pillow and pressed it to my face.

I hated Maxson. I hate his stupid scowl and the way he walked. I hated the smell of his hair gel. I hate his demeaning tone and his bigoted ideals. I hated his clumsiness when we danced and the way he looked at me and brushed hair away from my eyes and I hated how he kissed me at night and how he held me. I hate how genuine he sounded when he said he loved me and I hated the way he looked at me as if I was the only girl in the world. I hated that this bastard was the reason my heart was aching and I hated myself for being so stupid as to think he cared about me. I hated the way I cried over him. And I kept on crying until no more tears came out, only my strangled breath. When I moved my face out of the pillow, it was dark out. 

I got up on shaky knees and went to the bathroom. I pulled my hair back into a ponytail, rubbed some purified water into my face and applied a bit of petroleum jelly to my lips. I straightened up, cracked my neck, and stretched my arms behind my back. I closed my eyes and imagined my heart turning into a stone. It was a tactic I used when I was a marine, when I had to carry my dead friend’s body back to camp. 

I opened my eyes and saw a woman in the mirror that was new. It was like a metamorphosis, like I just transformed into a butterfly, but now, I was a blank slate, a new person, a changed woman. I was Daenerys again. The thick skinned, strong willed, communist busting bitch that escaped the vault with nothing but a 10mm pistol on her hip. Look where I was now. A woman who infiltrated the Brotherhood of Steel and left without a scratch. I was unstoppable. The Minutemen will rise higher than the Prydwen ever could. America will soon rebuild under this system. 

Ashi opened the door, I looked at her.

”Do you want to talk to me about what happened with you and Elder Maxson”.

I set my back rigidly,

”Who’s Elder Maxson?”

Ashi smiled,

”Atta girl.”


	11. Daenerys

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arthur realizes his grave mistake

Arthur:

 

I walked towards the vertibird deck, Smith behind me, yelling more now.

”How could you think like this? This is ridiculous, if you think, well, just how could you think-“ the high elder stuttered.

”High Elder” I sighed, turning to him, “I respect you. I do.” He seemed to be fuming, but I continued “But this woman took something from me. Something I cannot live without. And without her, I can not function as effectively as I could.”

”Then retrieve it and return” he said, furrowing his brows.

”You still do not understand. She took my heart from me. And with it, my passion, my will to continue...”

”This is all pathetic, childish thinking” the elder spit out. 

“Enough Smith” It was High Elder Jackson.

”Don’t you try and say anything” Smith said, pointing an accusatory finger at him. “You sympathized with her. You-“

”Understood her pain? Felt sorry for her?” Jackson crossed his arms, “As much as we like to take charge Smith, this is Maxson’s airship, not ours, and he hasn’t no obligation to listen to a word we say. He listens out of respect, but he has made a decision. A decision I stand behind, to bring back someone who made him a better man.”

Smith was speechless, as was I.

”Very well” Smith admitted after a bout of silence, “Go. Retrieve that piece of you. But if this does not work, you will give this all up. That is my one request.” 

I sighed, rubbing my hand through my hair, “Very well. If she refuses to return, I will return and do as you say.”

Smith turned and walked into the Prydwen without another word. Jackson nodded at me and did the same. I boarded the vertibird with Paladin Danse.

”Sanctuary Hills”

The lancer captain nodded and we started on our way. 

It was quiet for about 10 seconds until Danse spoke.

”Sir, I feel like this could have been prevented. I feel guilty for not helping.”

I turned to my paladin, “No one saw this-“

”I did.” 

Danse? He knew about...

”I noticed it was Daenerys on your wedding day. I met her once when she and her sister helped us at the police station. I offered them both positions in the Brotherhood. Daenerys seemed interested but declined when her sister did. I later asked her why, she told me that her sister was suffering. She realized that leaving her on her own to join our ranks would be detrimental to Ashi’s health. I found that honorable. But when I saw her on your wedding day, with the scar on her collarbone that did not belong to Ashi, I didn’t know what to do”

I put my hand on Danse’s shoulder. Even through the power armor, he seemed to notice.

”I don’t know her well, I didn’t know her intentions. I was going to tell you immediately but I saw... the way you acted around each other. She looked at you as if you were the only man in the room. You looked at her like she was this precious thing. I don’t know. I decided I’d wait. I saw the two of you a few days ago. I never saw her smile before, and there she was, smiling with your arm  wrapped around her shoulder. You were smiling too.”

I looked out at the vertibird. 

“No regrets now” I said.

Danse said nothing, just positioned himself at the vertibird mini gun.

Truth be told, these last 24 hours have been hell. Daenerys was engraved into my head. Her face was all I saw, her name was all I could hear. My vision was clouded, nothing mattered anymore. It was when I went to speak to Kells on the deck, that it all hit me so hard. While Kells spoke, I looked at the water below us, and wondered if a jump from this height would kill me. To think a few years ago I would have smacked myself for thinking like this, for putting so much of my trust into one person. Now, I didn’t want it any other way. Daenerys was the perfect person, for anyone, let alone me. The pain that came with this anticipation was heavy.

I would not blame her if she rejected me. I treated her like some object. I lied to her as much as she did to me. And as much as it would kill me for her to deny me, I loved her too much to possibly be angry with her. When the elders told me of her true identity, it felt like my world shattered. Like someone dug their fingers through my chest and ripped my heart out. And for the first time in a very long time, I was scared. Scared as the day I took on that dealthclaw by myself. Scared as the day I lost Sarah, one of my only friends. Nothing was worse than this feeling. Like a pressure on my chest that wouldn’t cease. The vertibird began its descent. I breathed in and out, steadily but terrified.

Danse exited first, then me. I was met by a very familiar face with very different features. She was surrounded by five Minutemen, two in power armor, one in a courser uniform. 

“If it isn’t the devil himself, old man Maxson.”

“You must be Ashi” I said, ignoring her insult. 

“And you must have some balls to come here after what happened” she said, gripping her gauss rifle a bit harder, 

“I don’t know what you did to her, but you are not welcome here.”

”What? I don’t understand” does she mean...

”Whatever the hell you put Dany through, I’ll be sure to force you through tenfold if you don’t tell me what the fuck you want.” 

I let out a breath,

”I want to talk.”

She laughed, it felt like a very classic villain laugh, though she wasn’t the villain here. I was.

”And what is it you want to talk about?”

I cleared my throat, “I was hoping I could speak to Daenerys.”

”You” she growled, “do not have the privilege of speaking of her name, let alone speaking with her. If you want a message sent, you can tell me.”

I sighed, clearly I would be getting nowhere, and I didn’t even see her. It was like someone was chipping away at me. Pretty soon there would be nothing left. 

“Please” I said, my voice a bit lower.

”No” she said defiantly, “after what you did...”

”And what exactly did I do?” I asked, raising my voice.

”I don’t know” she said, “whether you abused her physically, mentally, sexually...” she said the last word with venom in her tone.

”I assure you everything between us was consensual” the words escaping my mouth before I could take them back. 

She spit at me.

Honestly, I would have done the same. 

”You are disgusting. Get out of my settlement.”

”Ashi” a very stern voice called out.

I looked up and it was like my heart was going to jump out my chest. Daenerys has her arms crossed, leaning against the doorframe of a house.

”Dany, I got this.” Ashi assures her.

”You’re not my mother Ashi, I can handle myself.” Daenerys looked radiant. But something was different, a bit colder.

Ashi eyed her sister then looked at me, “If you so much as look at her the wrong way, you’ll regret it. Keep in mind, my sniper doesn’t take warning shots.”

”Thank you” I said, waiting. 

She moved away, the Minutemen with her scattered to their various posts. I stared at Daenerys, she looked at me briefly before heading inside. I walked in behind her. Danse stayed at the vertibird. I shut the door behind me. Daenerys turned and folded her arms. She was beautiful.

She shifted uncomfortably as I realized I was staring.

”What are you doing here?” She said it as a whisper, probably not meaning to.

Now there was a good question.

”I, uh...” I began, clearing my throat, “came to see my wife.”

She narrowed her eyes at me, “Technically, I’m not your wife. You’re looking for the other twin.” She began to walk slowly towards the door.

”Actually, I came to beg your forgiveness.” She kept moving.

”I offered you the world, and at the first test of honor, I betrayed your trust.”

She continued moving, right at the door, opening it. I panicked, it was like watching her slip away from me all over again.

“Daenerys please” I begged, not meaning for my voice to crack, not intending to sound so desperate. 

She stopped dead in her tracks, turning to look at me. Her eyes were shocked, almost... hopeful?

”Say it again” she said, her eyes welled up with tears.

”I’m sorry” I said slowly, wanting her to feel I meant it.

She shook her head,

“No” her voice becoming softer, her eyes smiling, “the part where you said my name.”

I breathed out, letting her name fall off my lips like it should have since I met her.

”Daenerys”. 

She smiled, the most beautiful smile I had ever seen in my life. She closed her eyes, as if savoring the way I said it.

”You know” I said, walking very slowly towards her, “I realize I never asked you to marry me. Perhaps this was a blessing in disguise.” I was in front of her now, her eyes were searching for something. 

“When you got on the vertibird, you took something from me, something I need.”

She held her breath.

”You took my heart.” I took her hands into mine, “Please tell me I haven’t lost it.”

Tears streamed down her face, I could feel my own eyes burning and my vision blurring.

"I lied to you Maxson” she admitted, shaking her head.

"I know, but I did the same to you.” I rubbed her wrist with my thumb, “You can call me Arthur by the way.” She chuckled at the irony. I took her left hand and got down on one knee. 

I thought her eyes were going to blow out of her head.

”I’m just a soldier” I breathed shakily, reaching for the box in my pocket.

”But I would feel like a king if you...” I opened the box, revealing the ring, “Daenerys Storm...” she covered her mouth with her hand, tears running down her face like a waterfall “would do me the honor of becoming my wife.”

She used both her hands to cover her face, crying into them. A wave of panic shook me, did she not want this? Was I moving too quickly. Those sentiments disappeared as soon and she wiped her eyes and looked at me, the biggest smile I’ve ever seen on her face. 

“Yes! Yes, Arthur, yes!”

I reached for her hand again, carefully putting the ring on that very specific finger. It was little big for her but she didn’t seem to notice or care. The minute it was on, I stood up to receive her. She wrapped her arms around me and crashed her lips onto mine. It felt like I was flying. Like a weight had been lifted off my chest and my skin was the only thing keeping me from going everywhere from once. I broke the kiss to smother her with more. I kissed her neck, her cheeks, her eyes, her forehead, her jaw. I didn’t care, as long as she knew how much I cared, how I would never ever allow something to come between us again.

She laughed, a noise so sweet I had to laugh with her. I picked her up by the waist, spinning us in circles. She laughed more, I couldn’t help laughing with her. 

When I finally put her down, she looked deep into my eyes, like she was staring into my soul, like she saw who I truly was, flaws and all. And she kissed me. And I gladly returned it.

And I never wanted this moment to end.

**Author's Note:**

> I found this idea cute, let me know what y'all think. I love reading the comments <3  
> Ciao ;*


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